Divinely Instituted Prerogatives of Israel as Yahweh's Chosen People
[St. Paul's list from Romans 9:4]
1. Divine election = adoption | It is an election which is interpreted as a corporate son-ship. In Exodus 4:22 Yahweh affirms, "?Israel is my son, my first-born" [also see Deuteronomy 14:1; Isaiah 1:2; Jeremiah 3:19-22; 31:9; Hosea 11:1]. This corporate privilege is extended to the children of Israel as a nation above all other nations of the earth. |
2. Yahweh's presence | Manifested in Yahweh's glory [Hebrew = shekinah; Greek = doxa] in the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire [Exodus 15:6, 11]; in the Theophany on Sinai [Exodus 13:21-22; 19-24]; in the desert Tabernacle [Exodus 34:30]; and later in the Temple in Jerusalem [1 Kings 8:11]. The promise of God's continual presence is made to Moses in Exodus 33:14-17. |
3. Covenants | Biblical covenants are either treaty covenants or royal grant covenants. Royal grant covenants are forever with no restrictions or stipulations, however, Treaty covenants provide blessings for faithfulness and obligations to be obeyed which carry a penalty for unfaithfulness [see the chart "Covenant Treaty Format"]. In Romans 9:4 Paul speaks of Israel's covenants with Yahweh in the plural [diathekai]. These covenants would include the covenant formed with Abraham, the physical father of Israel as God's covenant people, a 3-fold covenant that was extended through his son Isaac and grandson Jacob who is renamed Israel. It is from this covenant that all future covenants would extend; this includes the Sinai Covenant [Mosaic Covenant], the Covenant of Salt with Aaron and his descendants, the Covenant of Peace with Phinehas which promised a perpetual priesthood and the royal grant Davidic Covenant which promised his throne/kingdom would last forever see the chart of the 8 Biblical covenants]. The Abrahamic Covenant, Aaronic Covenant, Covenant of Peace with Phinehas, and the Davidic Covenant are all royal grant covenants that are forever with no stipulations. The Sinai Covenant has elements of both a treaty and royal grant covenant [for covenant stipulations see Leviticus chapter 26 and Deuteronomy chapter 28]. |
4. Torah [instruction], the creed and code | The expression of God's will given to instruct the covenant people in the holy will of God and to set them aside from all the nations as a people holy to Yahweh [Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:1-22] and related articles of moral and civil law. This instruction is not limited to the written Law of Moses but includes the sacred Oral Tradition and extends to all divinely inspired Old Testament texts which Yahweh placed in Israel's care. |
5. Liturgical worship of the One God | Established liturgical worship [latreia] including sacrificial requirements and communion. Moses received the instruction when he was taken into the heavenly court in Exodus 25-31. Worship was first established in the desert Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem. |
6. Prophetic promises | First made to Abraham [Genesis 12:2; 13:14-17; 15:4; 15:14-8, 16, 19; 21:12; 22:16-18]; to Isaac [Genesis 26:3-5]; to Jacob [28:13-14], to Moses [Deuteronomy 18:18-19], to Aaron [a href ="https://bible.usccb.org/bible/leviticus/2?13"Leviticus 2:13] and Phinehas [Numbers 25:11-15]; to David; 2 Samuel 7:11-16; and spoken by Yahweh through the Prophets concerning the unique condition of Israel's election. |
7. Ancestral heritage of the Promised Seed | Israel worshiped the God of their forefathers in whom the promised seed of Genesis 3:15 has been preserved, from Seth, to Noah and Shem, to the time of Abraham; [Exodus 3:13; 13:5] and it is from these forefathers that the Messiah came to Israel. |
8. Messiahism | The promise of a future redeemer who was destined to come from the people of Israel as prophet [first promised to Moses in Deuteronomy 18:18-19], and king [Davidic covenant 2 Samuel 7:11-16]; promised by the Prophets of Yahweh [i.e., Jeremiah 23:5-6; 30:9; 33:15; 36:30; Hosea 3:5; Psalms 132:17; Daniel 9:25]. |
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